1932-1933

World History 1932- 1933

Russian Famine, Lausanne Conference, Indian Congress Declared Illegal, Coup D'Etat Ends Monarchy in Siam, Japanese Attack Shanghai, Reconstrucrtion Finance Corporation, Bonus Army , Paraguay and Bolivia Fight, War Between Peru and Columbia, Doolittle Seizes Speed Record , Hitler Becomes Chancellor of Germany, Dachau Established, Japan Leaves Leagues of Nations , New Deal , Tennessee Valley Authority , Prohibition Repealed , Western Hemisphere Agreement, Hoover Dam , Boeing 247, Twa Takes Delivery

1932 Russian Famine -(4/14/31) In January 1930, Spanish dictator Primo de Riverra, who had been supported by the Spanish King, resigned. Agitation then increased for the restoration of the Constitution. In April 1931, King Alfonso left Spain without abdicating. In June, elections were held which gave the Republican-Socialist majority a commanding victory. A new constitution was adopted that provided for universal suffrage and complete separation of Church and State.

1932 Lausanne Conference -Representatives of Germany, Great Britain, France, and Japan met to decide the issue of German reparation debt payment. An agreement was reached whereby the debt would be deferred. The agreement was contingent upon the US agreeing to also defer the debt payment of the Western European governments. When the US Congress forbade any cancellation or reduction in debt repayment, the agreement disintegrated.

1932 Indian Congress Declared Illegal -In January 1932, the British government declared the Congress Party illegal and again arrested Gandhi. The government took extraordinarily repressive measures to crush the demonstrations that followed.

1932 Coup D'Etat Ends Absolute Monarchy in Siam -(6/24/32) The army staged a coup d'état that ended the absolute powers of the monarchy. The coup was staged by young army officers educated abroad. They held the King captive for a short period, until he agreed to a new constitution. Under this new constitution, a national assembly was created, half-appointed and half-elected under universal suffrage.

1932 Japanese Attack Shanghai -The Japanese continued their assault on China by attacking Shanghai. The Western powers protested vigorously and sent reinforcements to defend their interests. Heavy Western pressure forced the Japanese to withdraw.

1932 Reconstrucrtion Finance Corporation -(1/22/32) To fight the Depression, President Hoover supported the creation of the R.F.C. This entity was developed to lend money to corporations. The "Hoover approach" stated that if the companies got support, they would eventually support individuals.

1932 Bonus Army -(5/29/32) Army veterans, who were entitled to special bonus payments in 1945, marched on Washington, requesting an advance on their bonuses. All together, 5,000 marchers camped out in Washington. President Hoover ordered the army to remove them, which it promptly did.

1932 Paraguay and Bolivia Fight -In May 1931, a full-fledged war broke out between Paraguay and Bolivia over an area known as the "Gran Chaco." The Bolivians attacked Paraguay, but were repelled, suffering heavy losses. A truce was finally arranged in 1935. In 1938, a settlement was negotiated, giving Paraguay most of the disputed territory.

1932 War Between Peru and Columbia Break Out -Peruvians seized the Amazon border town of Leticia. This action sparked a two-year war that ended when the League of Nations restored the area to Columbian control in 1933.

1932 Doolittle Seizes Speed Record-(9/3/32) Major James Doolittle seized a new speed record at the Thomas Trophy Speed Race. Doolittle, flying a Granville Gee-Bee, averaged 294 mph during the race.

1933

1933 Hitler Becomes Chancellor of Germany -Presidential elections were held in March 1932. Hitler's vigorous denunciation of the Versailles Treaty, together with his denunciation of Jews, was hugely popular in a Germany suffering from high unemployment and inflation. This appeal, however, failed to win him the election. General Hindenberg won instead.

In July's Reichstag elections, the Nazis won the largest number of seats, but not a majority. No coalition government could be formed, and once again elections were called. Again the results were inconclusive.

In January, the centrists entered into a coalition with Hitler, making him the new Prime Minister of Germany. In February, the Reichstag burned down, and Hitler charged the fire had been the work of the Communists. He arrested all the Communist members of the parliament. Elections held a week later gave the Nazis only 44 percent of the votes. With the Communists in prison, however, Hitler was able to get the Reichstag to pass the Enabling Act. This made Hitler a dictator, removed Jews and other "undesirables" from all position of power and dissolved the Reichstag. Europe had entered into a dark era.

1933 Dachau Established - The Nazis rounded up all potential adversaries, arresting tens of thousands of opponents and Jews. There was no place to put them in jail, so the first of many concentration camps was opened at Dachau.

1933 Japan Leaves Leagues of Nations -(3/27/33) The League of Nations received a report from its Commission of Inquiry convened under the Earl of Lytton. The Commission found that Japanese action could not be justified as an act of self-defense. Furthermore, the report stated that the creation of Manchukuo did not result from a "genuine and spontaneous independence movement." The League adopted the American policy of non-recognition of any conquest. The result: the Japanese announced that they were withdrawing from the League.

1933 New Deal Begun -(3/4/33) The inauguration of Roosevelt as President brought with it the "New Deal," which saw the creation of a multitude of government agencies and activities to combat the Depression. These measures included large–scale work programs for the unemployed, and full–scale government projects.

1933 Tennessee Valley Authority Created -An independent public corporation was established to develop the Tennessee Valley by providing electricity and fertilizer to the inhabitants of the area. Between 1933 and 1944, nine large dams, as well as numerous power plants, were built.

1933 Prohibition Repealed -One of the first acts of the Roosevelt Administration was the repeal of Prohibition. This was done in a two-step process. The first step was the "Beer Revenue Act," which legalized beer and wine with an alcohol content of up to 3.2%. The second step was the passage of the 21st Amendment to the Constitution, which legalized liquor once again.

1933 Western Hemisphere Agreement -(10/10/33) The nations of the Western Hemisphere entered into an agreement in which they renounced aggression and use of force in the Western Hemisphere. The agreement marked the beginning of reconciliation between the nations of the Americas and the United States, which had intervened many times in the internal politicy affairs of the South America.

1933 Hoover Dam Completed -The Hoover Dam was completed in Nevada. Its was 276 feet tall and 1,242 feet wide. It spanned the Colorado River.

1933 Boeing 247 Launched -(3/20/33) On March 20th, United Airlines began flying the new Boeing 247. The Boeing was the first all metal mono-plane using a stress skin. The Boeing 247 had a cruising speed of 155 mph, with a range of 485 miles. It could carry 10 passengers.

1933 Twa Takes Delivery of Dc-1 -In order to compete with United Airlines, TWA commissioned an aircraft from Douglas Manufacturing. Douglas had to design a plane that could fly over the Rockies with only one engine. Douglas' chief designer convinced Charles Lindbergh, the technical advisor to TWA, to try the Douglas design. The DC–1 was the first plane to use "monocoque" design, where the weight of the plane and the wings are borne by the entire skin. The plane was also the first to have a two speed propeller.